Multimedia Experience According to Biometrics

ABSTRACT

Disclosed herein are example techniques for multimedia experience based on biometric data. An example implementation may involve receiving first biometric data representing one or more first biological characteristics of an individual. After receiving the first biometric data, the example implementation may involve correlating the one or more first biological characteristics of the individual with a listening state of the individual. The example implementation may further involve receiving second biometric data representing one or more second biological characteristics of the individual. After receiving the second biometric data, the example implementation may involve determining that the one or more second biological characteristics corresponds to the one or more first biological characteristics. Based on the determination, the example implementation may involve initiating a playback setting corresponding to the listening state of the individual that was correlated with the one or more first biological characteristics of the individual.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

The present application incorporates herein by reference the entirecontents of (i) U.S. application Ser. No. 15/098,867, filed Apr. 14,2016, titled “Default Playback Device Designation,” (ii) U.S. Pat. No.8,234,395, filed Apr. 1, 2004, titled “System and method forsynchronizing operations among a plurality of independently clockeddigital data processing devices,” (iii) U.S. application Ser. No.13/340,126, filed Dec. 29, 2011, titled “Sound Field Calibration UsingListener Localization,” (iv) U.S. application Ser. No. 15/131,244, filedApr. 18, 2016, titled, “Metadata exchange involving a networked playbacksystem and a networked microphone system,” and (v) U.S. application Ser.No. 13/338,724, filed Dec. 28, 2011, titled, “Methods and Systems toSelect an Audio Track.”

FIELD OF THE DISCLOSURE

The disclosure is related to consumer goods and, more particularly, tomethods, systems, products, features, services, and other elementsdirected to media playback or some aspect thereof.

BACKGROUND

Options for accessing and listening to digital audio in an out-loudsetting were limited until in 2003, when SONOS, Inc. filed for one ofits first patent applications, entitled “Method for Synchronizing AudioPlayback between Multiple Networked Devices,” and began offering a mediaplayback system for sale in 2005. The Sonos Wireless HiFi System enablespeople to experience music from many sources via one or more networkedplayback devices. Through a software control application installed on asmartphone, tablet, or computer, one can play what he or she wants inany room that has a networked playback device. Additionally, using thecontroller, for example, different songs can be streamed to each roomwith a playback device, rooms can be grouped together for synchronousplayback, or the same song can be heard in all rooms synchronously.

Given the ever growing interest in digital media, there continues to bea need to develop consumer-accessible technologies to further enhancethe listening experience.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Features, aspects, and advantages of the presently disclosed technologymay be better understood with regard to the following description,appended claims, and accompanying drawings where:

FIG. 1 shows an example media playback system configuration in whichcertain embodiments may be practiced;

FIG. 2 shows a functional block diagram of an example playback device;

FIG. 3 shows a functional block diagram of an example control device;

FIG. 4 shows an example controller interface;

FIG. 5 shows an example plurality of network devices;

FIG. 6 shows a functional block diagram of an example network microphonedevice;

FIG. 7 shows a functional block diagram of an example wearable device.

FIG. 8 shows a technique according to example embodiments.

The drawings are for the purpose of illustrating example embodiments,but it is understood that the inventions are not limited to thearrangements and instrumentality shown in the drawings.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION I. Overview

Various control inputs, such as physical inputs at a controller device,voice commands, and other control inputs, may be used to control anaudio playback device or media playback system, among other devices in ahousehold (e.g., lights). For example, an individual may wish to changeaudio content, playlist, or listening zone, add a music track to aplaylist or playback queue, or change a playback setting (e.g., play,pause, next track, previous track, playback volume, and EQ settings,among others) by way of a keyboard input, mouse input, touch input on atouch-sensitive display, and the like. In another example, an individualmay use various voice commands. U.S. application Ser. No. 15/098,867entitled, “Default Playback Device Designation,” which is herebyincorporated by reference in its entirety, provides examples ofvoice-enabled household architectures.

Additionally, as passive sensors become more prevalent, it may beadvantageous for an audio playback device or media playback system toutilize such passive sensors to control and/or otherwise affect themedia experience. In some instances, various biometric measurements ofindividuals may drive insights around individual interactions with anaudio playback device or media playback system. Such biometricmeasurements may in turn ultimately be used to control and/or otherwiseaffect the media experience.

Some example implementations described herein may utilize biometric dataand measurements of an individual to control media playback of a mediaplayback system, and example implementations described herein may alsoinvolve the media playback system obtaining permission to receive and/oranalyze an individual's biometrics. For instance, an individual mayprovide an indication to the computing device that the individual isopting into collection of biometric data of the individual.

Example implementations may involve a computing device receiving firstbiometric data representing one or more first biological characteristicsof an individual (or multiple individuals) during a first time period.Example biometric data may include data corresponding toproximity/location, blood pressure, pulse, perspiration, blood oxygenlevel, an accelerometer, a gyroscope, an electrocardiogram,electromyography, temperature, a millimeter wave scanner,electromagnetic radiation, an infrared laser, a camera, a microphone,temperature, perspiration, among other possibilities. For instance, awearable device (e.g., smart watch) might provide biometric datarepresenting biological characteristics of the individual. The biometricdata may be sent to the computing device continuously or collected overtime and then sent to the computing device.

Additionally, the computing device may supplement the received biometricdata with additional data from various sources. In some examples, thecomputing device may receive social media data gleaned from anindividual's social media account to supplement the received biometricdata. In other examples, the computing device may receive a user profileto supplement the received biometric data. User profiles may be sharedbetween any of the devices described herein via a network interface.Example user profiles may include voice characteristics that include thetone or frequency of the particular user's voice, age, gender, and userhistory, among other information.

After receiving the first biometric data, the computing device maycorrelate the one or more first biological characteristics of theindividual with a listening state of the individual. Example listeningstates might include a “lean-in” (i.e., attentive) listening state or a“lean-back” (i.e., inattentive) listening state. A listening state maybe based on, for example, an individual's mood (e.g., happy, sad),location, activity level (e.g., running, sleeping), and/or the generalmood or activity level of a particular environment (e.g., household,living room of a household). For instance, biological characteristicsindicating that an individual is sleeping may be correlated to a“lean-back” or inattentive listening state.

In some instances, the computing device may correlate the one or morefirst biological characteristics with an individual's mood. In otherinstances, the computing device may correlate the one or more firstbiological characteristics with an individual's location and/or level ofactivity. Other examples are possible as well.

Multiple iterations of correlating a listening state with one or morebiological characteristics may allow the computing device to create abiometric profile corresponding to the individual's characteristics. Agiven individual's biometric characteristics may be adaptively learnedover time by repeatedly correlating listening states with one or morebiological characteristics at different times.

After correlating the one or more first biological characteristics ofthe individual with a listening state of the individual, the computingdevice may receive second biometric data representing one or more secondbiological characteristics of the individual. In some cases, thecomputing device may determine that the one or more second biologicalcharacteristics correspond to the one or more first biologicalcharacteristics. Based on determining that the one or more secondbiological characteristics corresponds to the one or more firstbiological characteristics of the individual, the computing device mayinitiate a playback setting corresponding to the listening state thatwas correlated with the one or more first biological characteristics.For instance, if a user previously played a certain type of music whilehaving a certain set of biological characteristics, the media playbacksystem may play back that certain type of music when the user is againexhibiting that certain set of biological characteristics.

In further example implementations, the computing device may providebiometric data representing one or more biological characteristics of anindividual to cloud services. Such biometric data of individuals mayprovide additional insights to cloud services to improve algorithms inrecommending new media content or improving discovery of media contentbased on characteristics of the individual (e.g., current mood). In somecases, such biometric data may improve marketing and/or advertisementsby tailoring such content to the characteristics of the individual.Example cloud services may include media service providers (e.g.,Pandora® Radio, Spotify®, Slacker®, Radio, Google Play™, iTunes Radio),and smart device manufacturers (e.g., Nest®), among other cloudservices.

While some examples described herein may refer to functions performed bygiven actors such as “individuals,” “users,” and/or other entities, itshould be understood that this is for purposes of explanation only. Theclaims should not be interpreted to require action by any such exampleactor unless explicitly required by the language of the claimsthemselves. It will be understood by one of ordinary skill in the artthat this disclosure includes numerous other embodiments. Moreover, theexamples described herein may extend to a multitude of embodimentsformed by combining the example features in any suitable manner.

II. Example Operating Environment

FIG. 1 shows an example configuration of a media playback system 100 inwhich one or more embodiments disclosed herein may be practiced orimplemented. The media playback system 100 as shown is associated withan example home environment having several rooms and spaces, such as forexample, a master bedroom, an office, a dining room, and a living room.As shown in the example of FIG. 1, the media playback system 100includes playback devices 102-124, control devices 126 and 128, and awired or wireless network router 130.

Further discussions relating to the different components of the examplemedia playback system 100 and how the different components may interactto provide a user with a media experience may be found in the followingsections. While discussions herein may generally refer to the examplemedia playback system 100, technologies described herein are not limitedto applications within, among other things, the home environment asshown in FIG. 1. For instance, the technologies described herein may beuseful in environments where multi-zone audio may be desired, such as,for example, a commercial setting like a restaurant, mall or airport, avehicle like a sports utility vehicle (SUV), bus or car, a ship or boat,an airplane, and so on.

a. Example Playback Devices

FIG. 2 shows a functional block diagram of an example playback device200 that may be configured to be one or more of the playback devices102-124 of the media playback system 100 of FIG. 1. The playback device200 may include a processor 202, software components 204, memory 206,audio processing components 208, audio amplifier(s) 210, speaker(s) 212,a network interface 214 including wireless interface(s) 216 and wiredinterface(s) 218, and microphone(s) 220. In one case, the playbackdevice 200 may not include the speaker(s) 212, but rather a speakerinterface for connecting the playback device 200 to external speakers.In another case, the playback device 200 may include neither thespeaker(s) 212 nor the audio amplifier(s) 210, but rather an audiointerface for connecting the playback device 200 to an external audioamplifier or audio-visual receiver.

In one example, the processor 202 may be a clock-driven computingcomponent configured to process input data according to instructionsstored in the memory 206. The memory 206 may be a tangiblecomputer-readable medium configured to store instructions executable bythe processor 202. For instance, the memory 206 may be data storage thatcan be loaded with one or more of the software components 204 executableby the processor 202 to achieve certain functions. In one example, thefunctions may involve the playback device 200 retrieving audio data froman audio source or another playback device. In another example, thefunctions may involve the playback device 200 sending audio data toanother device or playback device on a network. In yet another example,the functions may involve pairing of the playback device 200 with one ormore playback devices to create a multi-channel audio environment.

Certain functions may involve the playback device 200 synchronizingplayback of audio content with one or more other playback devices.During synchronous playback, a listener will preferably not be able toperceive time-delay differences between playback of the audio content bythe playback device 200 and the one or more other playback devices. U.S.Pat. No. 8,234,395 entitled, “System and method for synchronizingoperations among a plurality of independently clocked digital dataprocessing devices,” which is hereby incorporated by reference in itsentirety, provides in more detail some examples for audio playbacksynchronization among playback devices.

The memory 206 may further be configured to store data associated withthe playback device 200, such as one or more zones and/or zone groupsthe playback device 200 is a part of, audio sources accessible by theplayback device 200, or a playback queue that the playback device 200(or some other playback device) may be associated with. The data may bestored as one or more state variables that are periodically updated andused to describe the state of the playback device 200. The memory 206may also include the data associated with the state of the other devicesof the media system, and shared from time to time among the devices sothat one or more of the devices have the most recent data associatedwith the system. Other embodiments are also possible.

The audio processing components 208 may include one or moredigital-to-analog converters (DAC), an audio preprocessing component, anaudio enhancement component or a digital signal processor (DSP), and soon. In one embodiment, one or more of the audio processing components208 may be a subcomponent of the processor 202. In one example, audiocontent may be processed and/or intentionally altered by the audioprocessing components 208 to produce audio signals. The produced audiosignals may then be provided to the audio amplifier(s) 210 foramplification and playback through speaker(s) 212. Particularly, theaudio amplifier(s) 210 may include devices configured to amplify audiosignals to a level for driving one or more of the speakers 212. Thespeaker(s) 212 may include an individual transducer (e.g., a “driver”)or a complete speaker system involving an enclosure with one or moredrivers. A particular driver of the speaker(s) 212 may include, forexample, a subwoofer (e.g., for low frequencies), a mid-range driver(e.g., for middle frequencies), and/or a tweeter (e.g., for highfrequencies). In some cases, each transducer in the one or more speakers212 may be driven by an individual corresponding audio amplifier of theaudio amplifier(s) 210. In addition to producing analog signals forplayback by the playback device 200, the audio processing components 208may be configured to process audio content to be sent to one or moreother playback devices for playback.

Audio content to be processed and/or played back by the playback device200 may be received from an external source, such as via an audioline-in input connection (e.g., an auto-detecting 3.5 mm audio line-inconnection) or the network interface 214.

The network interface 214 may be configured to facilitate a data flowbetween the playback device 200 and one or more other devices on a datanetwork. As such, the playback device 200 may be configured to receiveaudio content over the data network from one or more other playbackdevices in communication with the playback device 200, network deviceswithin a local area network, or audio content sources over a wide areanetwork such as the Internet. In one example, the audio content andother signals transmitted and received by the playback device 200 may betransmitted in the form of digital packet data containing an InternetProtocol (IP)-based source address and IP-based destination addresses.In such a case, the network interface 214 may be configured to parse thedigital packet data such that the data destined for the playback device200 is properly received and processed by the playback device 200.

As shown, the network interface 214 may include wireless interface(s)216 and wired interface(s) 218. The wireless interface(s) 216 mayprovide network interface functions for the playback device 200 towirelessly communicate with other devices (e.g., other playbackdevice(s), speaker(s), receiver(s), network device(s), control device(s)within a data network the playback device 200 is associated with) inaccordance with a communication protocol (e.g., any wireless standardincluding IEEE 802.11a, 802.11b, 802.11g, 802.11n, 802.11ac, 802.15, 4Gmobile communication standard, and so on). The wired interface(s) 218may provide network interface functions for the playback device 200 tocommunicate over a wired connection with other devices in accordancewith a communication protocol (e.g., IEEE 802.3). While the networkinterface 214 shown in FIG. 2 includes both wireless interface(s) 216and wired interface(s) 218, the network interface 214 may in someembodiments include only wireless interface(s) or only wiredinterface(s).

The microphone(s) 220 may be arranged to detect sound in the environmentof the playback device 200. For instance, the microphone(s) may bemounted on an exterior wall of a housing of the playback device. Themicrophone(s) may be any type of microphone now known or later developedsuch as a condenser microphone, electret condenser microphone, or adynamic microphone. The microphone(s) may be sensitive to a portion ofthe frequency range of the speaker(s) 220. One or more of the speaker(s)220 may operate in reverse as the microphone(s) 220. In some aspects,the playback device 200 might not include the microphone(s) 220.

In one example, the playback device 200 and one other playback devicemay be paired to play two separate audio components of audio content.For instance, playback device 200 may be configured to play a leftchannel audio component, while the other playback device may beconfigured to play a right channel audio component, thereby producing orenhancing a stereo effect of the audio content. The paired playbackdevices (also referred to as “bonded playback devices”) may further playaudio content in synchrony with other playback devices.

In another example, the playback device 200 may be sonicallyconsolidated with one or more other playback devices to form a single,consolidated playback device. A consolidated playback device may beconfigured to process and reproduce sound differently than anunconsolidated playback device or playback devices that are paired,because a consolidated playback device may have additional speakerdrivers through which audio content may be rendered. For instance, ifthe playback device 200 is a playback device designed to render lowfrequency range audio content (i.e. a subwoofer), the playback device200 may be consolidated with a playback device designed to render fullfrequency range audio content. In such a case, the full frequency rangeplayback device, when consolidated with the low frequency playbackdevice 200, may be configured to render only the mid and high frequencycomponents of audio content, while the low frequency range playbackdevice 200 renders the low frequency component of the audio content. Theconsolidated playback device may further be paired with a singleplayback device or yet another consolidated playback device.

By way of illustration, SONOS, Inc. presently offers (or has offered)for sale certain playback devices including a “PLAY:1,” “PLAY:3,”“PLAY:5,” “PLAYBAR,” “CONNECT:AMP,” “CONNECT,” and “SUB.” Any otherpast, present, and/or future playback devices may additionally oralternatively be used to implement the playback devices of exampleembodiments disclosed herein. Additionally, it is understood that aplayback device is not limited to the example illustrated in FIG. 2 orto the SONOS product offerings. For example, a playback device mayinclude a wired or wireless headphone. In another example, a playbackdevice may include or interact with a docking station for personalmobile media playback devices. In yet another example, a playback devicemay be integral to another device or component such as a television, alighting fixture, or some other device for indoor or outdoor use.

b. Example Playback Zone Configurations

Referring back to the media playback system 100 of FIG. 1, theenvironment may have one or more playback zones, each with one or moreplayback devices. The media playback system 100 may be established withone or more playback zones, after which one or more zones may be added,or removed to arrive at the example configuration shown in FIG. 1. Eachzone may be given a name according to a different room or space such asan office, bathroom, master bedroom, bedroom, kitchen, dining room,living room, and/or balcony. In one case, a single playback zone mayinclude multiple rooms or spaces. In another case, a single room orspace may include multiple playback zones.

As shown in FIG. 1, the balcony, dining room, kitchen, bathroom, office,and bedroom zones each have one playback device, while the living roomand master bedroom zones each have multiple playback devices. In theliving room zone, playback devices 104, 106, 108, and 110 may beconfigured to play audio content in synchrony as individual playbackdevices, as one or more bonded playback devices, as one or moreconsolidated playback devices, or any combination thereof. Similarly, inthe case of the master bedroom, playback devices 122 and 124 may beconfigured to play audio content in synchrony as individual playbackdevices, as a bonded playback device, or as a consolidated playbackdevice.

In one example, one or more playback zones in the environment of FIG. 1may each be playing different audio content. For instance, the user maybe grilling in the balcony zone and listening to hip hop music beingplayed by the playback device 102 while another user may be preparingfood in the kitchen zone and listening to classical music being playedby the playback device 114. In another example, a playback zone may playthe same audio content in synchrony with another playback zone. Forinstance, the user may be in the office zone where the playback device118 is playing the same rock music that is being playing by playbackdevice 102 in the balcony zone. In such a case, playback devices 102 and118 may be playing the rock music in synchrony such that the user mayseamlessly (or at least substantially seamlessly) enjoy the audiocontent that is being played out-loud while moving between differentplayback zones. Synchronization among playback zones may be achieved ina manner similar to that of synchronization among playback devices, asdescribed in previously referenced U.S. Pat. No. 8,234,395.

As suggested above, the zone configurations of the media playback system100 may be dynamically modified, and in some embodiments, the mediaplayback system 100 supports numerous configurations. For instance, if auser physically moves one or more playback devices to or from a zone,the media playback system 100 may be reconfigured to accommodate thechange(s). For instance, if the user physically moves the playbackdevice 102 from the balcony zone to the office zone, the office zone maynow include both the playback device 118 and the playback device 102.The playback device 102 may be paired or grouped with the office zoneand/or renamed if so desired via a control device such as the controldevices 126 and 128. On the other hand, if the one or more playbackdevices are moved to a particular area in the home environment that isnot already a playback zone, a new playback zone may be created for theparticular area.

Further, different playback zones of the media playback system 100 maybe dynamically combined into zone groups or split up into individualplayback zones. For instance, the dining room zone and the kitchen zone114 may be combined into a zone group for a dinner party such thatplayback devices 112 and 114 may render audio content in synchrony. Onthe other hand, the living room zone may be split into a television zoneincluding playback device 104, and a listening zone including playbackdevices 106, 108, and 110, if the user wishes to listen to music in theliving room space while another user wishes to watch television.

c. Example Control Devices

FIG. 3 shows a functional block diagram of an example control device 300that may be configured to be one or both of the control devices 126 and128 of the media playback system 100. As shown, the control device 300may include a processor 302, memory 304, a network interface 306, a userinterface 308, microphone(s) 310, and software components 312. In oneexample, the control device 300 may be a dedicated controller for themedia playback system 100. In another example, the control device 300may be a network device on which media playback system controllerapplication software may be installed, such as for example, an iPhone™,iPad™ or any other smart phone, tablet or network device (e.g., anetworked computer such as a PC or Mac™).

The processor 302 may be configured to perform functions relevant tofacilitating user access, control, and configuration of the mediaplayback system 100. The memory 304 may be data storage that can beloaded with one or more of the software components executable by theprocessor 302 to perform those functions. The memory 304 may also beconfigured to store the media playback system controller applicationsoftware and other data associated with the media playback system 100and the user.

In one example, the network interface 306 may be based on an industrystandard (e.g., infrared, radio, wired standards including IEEE 802.3,wireless standards including IEEE 802.11a, 802.11b, 802.11g, 802.11n,802.11ac, 802.15, 4G mobile communication standard, and so on). Thenetwork interface 306 may provide a means for the control device 300 tocommunicate with other devices in the media playback system 100. In oneexample, data and information (e.g., such as a state variable) may becommunicated between control device 300 and other devices via thenetwork interface 306. For instance, playback zone and zone groupconfigurations in the media playback system 100 may be received by thecontrol device 300 from a playback device or another network device, ortransmitted by the control device 300 to another playback device ornetwork device via the network interface 306. In some cases, the othernetwork device may be another control device.

Playback device control commands such as volume control and audioplayback control may also be communicated from the control device 300 toa playback device via the network interface 306. As suggested above,changes to configurations of the media playback system 100 may also beperformed by a user using the control device 300. The configurationchanges may include adding/removing one or more playback devices to/froma zone, adding/removing one or more zones to/from a zone group, forminga bonded or consolidated player, separating one or more playback devicesfrom a bonded or consolidated player, among others. Accordingly, thecontrol device 300 may sometimes be referred to as a controller, whetherthe control device 300 is a dedicated controller or a network device onwhich media playback system controller application software isinstalled.

Control device 300 may include microphone(s) 310. Microphone(s) 310 maybe arranged to detect sound in the environment of the control device300. Microphone(s) 310 may be any type of microphone now known or laterdeveloped such as a condenser microphone, electret condenser microphone,or a dynamic microphone. The microphone(s) may be sensitive to a portionof a frequency range. Two or more microphones 310 may be arranged tocapture location information of an audio source (e.g., voice, audiblesound) and/or to assist in filtering background noise.

The user interface 308 of the control device 300 may be configured tofacilitate user access and control of the media playback system 100, byproviding a controller interface such as the controller interface 400shown in FIG. 4. The controller interface 400 includes a playbackcontrol region 410, a playback zone region 420, a playback status region430, a playback queue region 440, and an audio content sources region450. The user interface 400 as shown is just one example of a userinterface that may be provided on a network device such as the controldevice 300 of FIG. 3 (and/or the control devices 126 and 128 of FIG. 1)and accessed by users to control a media playback system such as themedia playback system 100. Other user interfaces of varying formats,styles, and interactive sequences may alternatively be implemented onone or more network devices to provide comparable control access to amedia playback system.

The playback control region 410 may include selectable (e.g., by way oftouch or by using a cursor) icons to cause playback devices in aselected playback zone or zone group to play or pause, fast forward,rewind, skip to next, skip to previous, enter/exit shuffle mode,enter/exit repeat mode, enter/exit cross fade mode. The playback controlregion 410 may also include selectable icons to modify equalizationsettings, and playback volume, among other possibilities.

The playback zone region 420 may include representations of playbackzones within the media playback system 100. In some embodiments, thegraphical representations of playback zones may be selectable to bringup additional selectable icons to manage or configure the playback zonesin the media playback system, such as a creation of bonded zones,creation of zone groups, separation of zone groups, and renaming of zonegroups, among other possibilities.

For example, as shown, a “group” icon may be provided within each of thegraphical representations of playback zones. The “group” icon providedwithin a graphical representation of a particular zone may be selectableto bring up options to select one or more other zones in the mediaplayback system to be grouped with the particular zone. Once grouped,playback devices in the zones that have been grouped with the particularzone will be configured to play audio content in synchrony with theplayback device(s) in the particular zone. Analogously, a “group” iconmay be provided within a graphical representation of a zone group. Inthis case, the “group” icon may be selectable to bring up options todeselect one or more zones in the zone group to be removed from the zonegroup. Other interactions and implementations for grouping andungrouping zones via a user interface such as the user interface 400 arealso possible. The representations of playback zones in the playbackzone region 420 may be dynamically updated as playback zone or zonegroup configurations are modified.

The playback status region 430 may include graphical representations ofaudio content that is presently being played, previously played, orscheduled to play next in the selected playback zone or zone group. Theselected playback zone or zone group may be visually distinguished onthe user interface, such as within the playback zone region 420 and/orthe playback status region 430. The graphical representations mayinclude track title, artist name, album name, album year, track length,and other relevant information that may be useful for the user to knowwhen controlling the media playback system via the user interface 400.

The playback queue region 440 may include graphical representations ofaudio content in a playback queue associated with the selected playbackzone or zone group. In some embodiments, each playback zone or zonegroup may be associated with a playback queue containing informationcorresponding to zero or more audio items for playback by the playbackzone or zone group. For instance, each audio item in the playback queuemay comprise a uniform resource identifier (URI), a uniform resourcelocator (URL) or some other identifier that may be used by a playbackdevice in the playback zone or zone group to find and/or retrieve theaudio item from a local audio content source or a networked audiocontent source, possibly for playback by the playback device.

In one example, a playlist may be added to a playback queue, in whichcase information corresponding to each audio item in the playlist may beadded to the playback queue. In another example, audio items in aplayback queue may be saved as a playlist. In a further example, aplayback queue may be empty, or populated but “not in use” when theplayback zone or zone group is playing continuously streaming audiocontent, such as Internet radio that may continue to play untilotherwise stopped, rather than discrete audio items that have playbackdurations. In an alternative embodiment, a playback queue can includeInternet radio and/or other streaming audio content items and be “inuse” when the playback zone or zone group is playing those items. Otherexamples are also possible.

When playback zones or zone groups are “grouped” or “ungrouped,”playback queues associated with the affected playback zones or zonegroups may be cleared or re-associated. For example, if a first playbackzone including a first playback queue is grouped with a second playbackzone including a second playback queue, the established zone group mayhave an associated playback queue that is initially empty, that containsaudio items from the first playback queue (such as if the secondplayback zone was added to the first playback zone), that contains audioitems from the second playback queue (such as if the first playback zonewas added to the second playback zone), or a combination of audio itemsfrom both the first and second playback queues. Subsequently, if theestablished zone group is ungrouped, the resulting first playback zonemay be re-associated with the previous first playback queue, or beassociated with a new playback queue that is empty or contains audioitems from the playback queue associated with the established zone groupbefore the established zone group was ungrouped. Similarly, theresulting second playback zone may be re-associated with the previoussecond playback queue, or be associated with a new playback queue thatis empty, or contains audio items from the playback queue associatedwith the established zone group before the established zone group wasungrouped. Other examples are also possible.

Referring back to the user interface 400 of FIG. 4, the graphicalrepresentations of audio content in the playback queue region 440 mayinclude track titles, artist names, track lengths, and other relevantinformation associated with the audio content in the playback queue. Inone example, graphical representations of audio content may beselectable to bring up additional selectable icons to manage and/ormanipulate the playback queue and/or audio content represented in theplayback queue. For instance, a represented audio content may be removedfrom the playback queue, moved to a different position within theplayback queue, or selected to be played immediately, or after anycurrently playing audio content, among other possibilities. A playbackqueue associated with a playback zone or zone group may be stored in amemory on one or more playback devices in the playback zone or zonegroup, on a playback device that is not in the playback zone or zonegroup, and/or some other designated device.

The audio content sources region 450 may include graphicalrepresentations of selectable audio content sources from which audiocontent may be retrieved and played by the selected playback zone orzone group. Discussions pertaining to audio content sources may be foundin the following section.

d. Example Audio Content Sources

As indicated previously, one or more playback devices in a zone or zonegroup may be configured to retrieve for playback audio content (e.g.according to a corresponding URI or URL for the audio content) from avariety of available audio content sources. In one example, audiocontent may be retrieved by a playback device directly from acorresponding audio content source (e.g., a line-in connection). Inanother example, audio content may be provided to a playback device overa network via one or more other playback devices or network devices.

Example audio content sources may include a memory of one or moreplayback devices in a media playback system such as the media playbacksystem 100 of FIG. 1, local music libraries on one or more networkdevices (such as a control device, a network-enabled personal computer,or a networked-attached storage (NAS), for example), streaming audioservices providing audio content via the Internet (e.g., the cloud), oraudio sources connected to the media playback system via a line-in inputconnection on a playback device or network devise, among otherpossibilities.

In some embodiments, audio content sources may be regularly added orremoved from a media playback system such as the media playback system100 of FIG. 1. In one example, an indexing of audio items may beperformed whenever one or more audio content sources are added, removedor updated. Indexing of audio items may involve scanning foridentifiable audio items in all folders/directory shared over a networkaccessible by playback devices in the media playback system, andgenerating or updating an audio content database containing metadata(e.g., title, artist, album, track length, among others) and otherassociated information, such as a URI or URL for each identifiable audioitem found. Other examples for managing and maintaining audio contentsources may also be possible.

The above discussions relating to playback devices, controller devices,playback zone configurations, and media content sources provide onlysome examples of operating environments within which functions andmethods described below may be implemented. Other operating environmentsand configurations of media playback systems, playback devices, andnetwork devices not explicitly described herein may also be applicableand suitable for implementation of the functions and methods.

e. Example Plurality of Networked Devices

FIG. 5 shows an example plurality of devices 500 that may be configuredto provide an audio playback experience based on voice control. Onehaving ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that the devices shownin FIG. 5 are for illustrative purposes only, and variations includingdifferent and/or additional devices may be possible. As shown, theplurality of devices 500 includes computing devices 504, 506, and 508;network microphone devices (NMDs) 512, 514, and 516; playback devices(PBDs) 532, 534, 536, and 538; and a controller device (CR) 522.

Each of the plurality of devices 500 may be network-capable devices thatcan establish communication with one or more other devices in theplurality of devices according to one or more network protocols, such asNFC, Bluetooth, Ethernet, and IEEE 802.11, among other examples, overone or more types of networks, such as wide area networks (WAN), localarea networks (LAN), and personal area networks (PAN), among otherpossibilities.

As shown, the computing devices 504, 506, and 508 may be part of a cloudnetwork 502. The cloud network 502 may include additional computingdevices. In one example, the computing devices 504, 506, and 508 may bedifferent servers. In another example, two or more of the computingdevices 504, 506, and 508 may be modules of a single server.Analogously, each of the computing device 504, 506, and 508 may includeone or more modules or servers. For ease of illustration purposesherein, each of the computing devices 504, 506, and 508 may beconfigured to perform particular functions within the cloud network 502.For instance, computing device 508 may be a source of audio content fora streaming music service.

As shown, the computing device 504 may be configured to interface withNMDs 512, 514, and 516 via communication path 542. NMDs 512, 514, and516 may be components of one or more “Smart Home” systems. In one case,NMDs 512, 514, and 516 may be physically distributed throughout ahousehold, similar to the distribution of devices shown in FIG. 1. Inanother case, two or more of the NMDs 512, 514, and 516 may bephysically positioned within relative close proximity of one another.Communication path 542 may comprise one or more types of networks, suchas a WAN including the Internet, LAN, and/or PAN, among otherpossibilities.

In one example, one or more of the NMDs 512, 514, and 516 may be devicesconfigured primarily for audio detection. In another example, one ormore of the NMDs 512, 514, and 516 may be components of devices havingvarious primary utilities. For instance, as discussed above inconnection to FIGS. 2 and 3, one or more of NMDs 512, 514, and 516 maybe the microphone(s) 220 of playback device 200 or the microphone(s) 310of network device 300. Further, in some cases, one or more of NMDs 512,514, and 516 may be the playback device 200 or network device 300. In anexample, one or more of NMDs 512, 514, and/or 516 may include multiplemicrophones arranged in a microphone array.

As shown, the computing device 506 may be configured to interface withCR 522 and PBDs 532, 534, 536, and 538 via communication path 544. Inone example, CR 522 may be a network device such as the network device200 of FIG. 2. Accordingly, CR 522 may be configured to provide thecontroller interface 400 of FIG. 4. Similarly, PBDs 532, 534, 536, and538 may be playback devices such as the playback device 300 of FIG. 3.As such, PBDs 532, 534, 536, and 538 may be physically distributedthroughout a household as shown in FIG. 1. For illustration purposes,PBDs 536 and 538 may be part of a bonded zone 530, while PBDs 532 and534 may be part of their own respective zones. As described above, thePBDs 532, 534, 536, and 538 may be dynamically bonded, grouped,unbonded, and ungrouped. Communication path 544 may comprise one or moretypes of networks, such as a WAN including the Internet, LAN, and/orPAN, among other possibilities.

In one example, as with NMDs 512, 514, and 516, CR 522 and PBDs 532,534, 536, and 538 may also be components of one or more “Smart Home”systems. In one case, PBDs 532, 534, 536, and 538 may be distributedthroughout the same household as the NMDs 512, 514, and 516. Further, assuggested above, one or more of PBDs 532, 534, 536, and 538 may be oneor more of NMDs 512, 514, and 516.

The NMDs 512, 514, and 516 may be part of a local area network, and thecommunication path 542 may include an access point that links the localarea network of the NMDs 512, 514, and 516 to the computing device 504over a WAN (communication path not shown). Likewise, each of the NMDs512, 514, and 516 may communicate with each other via such an accesspoint.

Similarly, CR 522 and PBDs 532, 534, 536, and 538 may be part of a localarea network and/or a local playback network as discussed in previoussections, and the communication path 544 may include an access pointthat links the local area network and/or local playback network of CR522 and PBDs 532, 534, 536, and 538 to the computing device 506 over aWAN. As such, each of the CR 522 and PBDs 532, 534, 536, and 538 mayalso communicate with each over such an access point.

In one example, a single access point may include communication paths542 and 544. In an example, each of the NMDs 512, 514, and 516, CR 522,and PBDs 532, 534, 536, and 538 may access the cloud network 502 via thesame access point for a household.

As shown in FIG. 5, each of the NMDs 512, 514, and 516, CR 522, and PBDs532, 534, 536, and 538 may also directly communicate with one or more ofthe other devices via communication means 546. Communication means 546as described herein may involve one or more forms of communicationbetween the devices, according to one or more network protocols, overone or more types of networks, and/or may involve communication via oneor more other network devices. For instance, communication means 546 mayinclude one or more of for example, Bluetooth™ (IEEE 802.15), NFC,Wireless direct, and/or Proprietary wireless, among other possibilities.

In one example, CR 522 may communicate with NMD 512 over Bluetooth™, andcommunicate with PBD 534 over another local area network. In anotherexample, NMD 514 may communicate with CR 522 over another local areanetwork, and communicate with PBD 536 over Bluetooth. In a furtherexample, each of the PBDs 532, 534, 536, and 538 may communicate witheach other according to a spanning tree protocol over a local playbacknetwork, while each communicating with CR 522 over a local area network,different from the local playback network. Other examples are alsopossible.

In some cases, communication means between the NMDs 512, 514, and 516,CR 522, and PBDs 532, 534, 536, and 538 may change depending on types ofcommunication between the devices, network conditions, and/or latencydemands. For instance, communication means 546 may be used when NMD 516is first introduced to the household with the PBDs 532, 534, 536, and538. In one case, the NMD 516 may transmit identification informationcorresponding to the NMD 516 to PBD 538 via NFC, and PBD 538 may inresponse, transmit local area network information to NMD 516 via NFC (orsome other form of communication). However, once NMD 516 has beenconfigured within the household, communication means between NMD 516 andPBD 538 may change. For instance, NMD 516 may subsequently communicatewith PBD 538 via communication path 542, the cloud network 502, andcommunication path 544. In another example, the NMDs and PBDs may nevercommunicate via local communications means 546. In a further example,the NMDs and PBDs may communicate primarily via local communicationsmeans 546. Other examples are also possible.

In an illustrative example, NMDs 512, 514, and 516 may be configured toreceive voice inputs to control PBDs 532, 534, 536, and 538. Theavailable control commands may include any media playback systemcontrols previously discussed, such as playback volume control, playbacktransport controls, music source selection, and grouping, among otherpossibilities. In one instance, NMD 512 may receive a voice input tocontrol one or more of the PBDs 532, 534, 536, and 538. In response toreceiving the voice input, NMD 512 may transmit via communication path542, the voice input to computing device 504 for processing. In oneexample, the computing device 504 may convert the voice input to anequivalent text command, and parse the text command to identify acommand. Computing device 504 may then subsequently transmit the textcommand to the computing device 506. In another example, the computingdevice 504 may convert the voice input to an equivalent text command,and then subsequently transmit the text command to the computing device506. The computing device 506 may then parse the text command toidentify one or more playback commands.

For instance, if the text command is “Play ‘Track 1’ by ‘Artist 1’ from‘Streaming Service 1’ in ‘Zone 1’,” The computing device 506 mayidentify (i) a URL for “Track 1” by “Artist 1” available from “StreamingService 1,” and (ii) at least one playback device in “Zone 1.” In thisexample, the URL for “Track 1” by “Artist 1” from “Streaming Service 1”may be a URL pointing to computing device 508, and “Zone 1” may be thebonded zone 530. As such, upon identifying the URL and one or both ofPBDs 536 and 538, the computing device 506 may transmit viacommunication path 544 to one or both of PBDs 536 and 538, theidentified URL for playback. One or both of PBDs 536 and 538 mayresponsively retrieve audio content from the computing device 508according to the received URL, and begin playing “Track 1” by “Artist 1”from “Streaming Service 1.”

One having ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that the above isjust one illustrative example, and that other implementations are alsopossible. In one case, operations performed by one or more of theplurality of devices 500, as described above, may be performed by one ormore other devices in the plurality of device 500. For instance, theconversion from voice input to the text command may be alternatively,partially, or wholly performed by another device or devices, such as NMD512, computing device 506, PBD 536, and/or PBD 538. Analogously, theidentification of the URL may be alternatively, partially, or whollyperformed by another device or devices, such as NMD 512, computingdevice 504, PBD 536, and/or PBD 538.

f. Example Network Microphone Device

FIG. 6 shows a block diagram of an example network microphone device 600that may be configured to be one or more of NMDs 512, 514, and 516 ofFIG. 5. As shown, the network microphone device 600 includes a processor602, memory 604, a microphone array 606, a network interface 608, a userinterface 610, software components 612, and speaker(s) 614. One havingordinary skill in the art will appreciate that other network microphonedevice configurations and arrangements are also possible. For instance,network microphone devices may alternatively exclude the speaker(s) 614or have a single microphone instead of microphone array 606.

The processor 602 may include one or more processors and/or controllers,which may take the form of a general or special-purpose processor orcontroller. For instance, the processing unit 602 may includemicroprocessors, microcontrollers, application-specific integratedcircuits, digital signal processors, and the like. The memory 604 may bedata storage that can be loaded with one or more of the softwarecomponents executable by the processor 602 to perform those functions.Accordingly, memory 604 may comprise one or more non-transitorycomputer-readable storage mediums, examples of which may includevolatile storage mediums such as random access memory, registers, cache,etc. and non-volatile storage mediums such as read-only memory, ahard-disk drive, a solid-state drive, flash memory, and/or anoptical-storage device, among other possibilities.

The microphone array 606 may be a plurality of microphones arranged todetect sound in the environment of the network microphone device 600.Microphone array 606 may include any type of microphone now known orlater developed such as a condenser microphone, electret condensermicrophone, or a dynamic microphone, among other possibilities. In oneexample, the microphone array may be arranged to detect audio from oneor more directions relative to the network microphone device. Themicrophone array 606 may be sensitive to a portion of a frequency range.In one example, a first subset of the microphone array 606 may besensitive to a first frequency range, while a second subset of themicrophone array may be sensitive to a second frequency range. Themicrophone array 606 may further be arranged to capture locationinformation of an audio source (e.g., voice, audible sound) and/or toassist in filtering background noise. Notably, in some embodiments themicrophone array may consist of only a single microphone, rather than aplurality of microphones.

The network interface 608 may be configured to facilitate wirelessand/or wired communication between various network devices, such as, inreference to FIG. 5, CR 522, PBDs 532-538, computing device 504-508 incloud network 502, and other network microphone devices, among otherpossibilities. As such, network interface 608 may take any suitable formfor carrying out these functions, examples of which may include anEthernet interface, a serial bus interface (e.g., FireWire, USB 2.0,etc.), a chipset and antenna adapted to facilitate wirelesscommunication, and/or any other interface that provides for wired and/orwireless communication. In one example, the network interface 608 may bebased on an industry standard (e.g., infrared, radio, wired standardsincluding IEEE 802.3, wireless standards including IEEE 802.11a,802.11b, 802.11g, 802.11n, 802.11ac, 802.15, 4G mobile communicationstandard, and so on).

The user interface 610 of the network microphone device 600 may beconfigured to facilitate user interactions with the network microphonedevice. In one example, the user interface 608 may include one or moreof physical buttons, graphical interfaces provided on touch sensitivescreen(s) and/or surface(s), among other possibilities, for a user todirectly provide input to the network microphone device 600. The userinterface 610 may further include one or more of lights and thespeaker(s) 614 to provide visual and/or audio feedback to a user. In oneexample, the network microphone device 600 may further be configured toplayback audio content via the speaker(s) 614.

g. Example Biometric Device

FIG. 7 shows a block diagram of an example wearable device 700 that maybe configured measure one or more characteristics, such as biologicalcharacteristics, of an individual wearing the device. Wearable device700 may be, for example, a smart watch, glasses, fabric, contact lenses,headband, wristband, cap, or jewelry, among other devices that can beworn on the body of an individual. Biological characteristics mayinclude, for example, the mental status (e.g., mood), physical status(e.g., sleeping, exercising), health conditions, and othercharacteristics that may be determined or inferred based on variousbiometric data detected via the wearable device 700.

As shown, wearable device 700 may include one or more processors 710 todetermine one or more biological characteristics of an individualwearing the wearable device 700. Wearable device 700 may also includesensors 720-730 configured to obtain biometric data and memory 740configured to store the biometric data. For example, sensors 720-730 maybe configured to detect biometric data corresponding to variousbiological characteristics. Biometric data may include, for example,gender, weight, height, respiration, stress, fatigue, metabolic rate,calorie burn rate, sleep patterns, mental alertness, cholesterol level,lactic acid level, body fat, hormone level, muscle mass, blood pressure,pulse, perspiration, blood oxygen level, temperature (e.g., body, skin),cardiac rhythm and other data measured via an electrocardiogram and/orelectromyography, and the like. Such biometric data may be used todetermine or infer various biological characteristics of an individual.

In some examples, wearable device 700 may include a wirelesscommunication interface 750 that can transmit biometric data to anexternal device, system, or server (e.g., CR 522, PBDs 532-538,computing device 504-508 in cloud network 502, and other networkmicrophone devices). The wireless communication interface 750 mayinclude, for example, Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, and/or any other wirelesscommunication protocol. The biometric data transmitted by the wirelesscommunication interface 750 may correspond to the measured one or morebiological characteristics of an individual wearing the wearable device700.

III. Example Systems and Methods for Multimedia Experience According toBiometrics

As noted above, as passive sensors become more prevalent, a mediaplayback system may utilize such passive sensors to control and/orotherwise affect media experience. In some instances, a media playbacksystem may utilize various biometric measurements of individuals tocontrol playback of a media playback system based on the biologicalcharacteristics of one or more individuals.

Generally, it should be understood that one or more functions describedherein may be performed by a computing device individually or incombination with the media playback system server, networked microphonesystem server, PBDs 532-538, NMDs 512-516, CR 522, or any other devicesdescribed herein. Alternatively, the computing device itself may beintegrated with the media playback system server, networked microphonesystem server, one of the PBDs 532-538, one of the NMDs 512-516, CR 522,or any other device described herein.

Implementation 800 shown in FIG. 8 presents an embodiment of exampletechniques described herein. Implementation 800 can be implementedwithin an operating environment including or involving, for example, themedia playback system 100 of FIG. 1, one or more playback devices 200 ofFIG. 2, one or more control devices 300 of FIG. 3, the user interface ofFIG. 4, and/or the configuration shown in FIG. 5. Implementation 800 mayinclude one or more operations, functions, or actions as illustrated byone or more of blocks 802-810. Although the blocks are illustrated insequential order, these blocks may also be performed in parallel, and/orin a different order than those described herein. Also, the variousblocks may be combined into fewer blocks, divided into additionalblocks, and/or removed based upon the desired implementation.

In addition, for the implementation 800 and other processes and methodsdisclosed herein, the flowchart shows functionality and operation of onepossible implementation of some embodiments. In this regard, each blockmay represent a module, a segment, or a portion of program code, whichincludes one or more instructions executable by a processor forimplementing specific logical functions or steps in the process. Theprogram code may be stored on any type of computer readable medium, forexample, such as a storage device including a disk or hard drive. Thecomputer readable medium may include non-transitory computer readablemedium, for example, such as tangible, non-transitory computer-readablemedia that stores data for short periods of time like register memory,processor cache and Random Access Memory (RAM). The computer readablemedium may also include non-transitory media, such as secondary orpersistent long term storage, like read only memory (ROM), optical ormagnetic disks, compact-disc read only memory (CD-ROM), for example. Thecomputer readable media may also be any other volatile or non-volatilestorage systems. The computer readable medium may be considered acomputer readable storage medium, for example, or a tangible storagedevice. In addition, for the implementation 800 and other processes andmethods disclosed herein, each block in FIG. 8 may represent circuitrythat is wired to perform the specific logical functions in the process.

a. Receive First Biometric Data Representing One or More FirstBiological Characteristics During First Time Period

At block 802, implementation 800 involves receiving first biometric datarepresenting one or more first biological characteristics during a firsttime period. For instance, a computing device may receive firstbiometric data representing one or more first biological characteristicsof an individual (or multiple individuals) during a first time period.The computing device described herein may be, for example, computingdevice 506 (configured as a cloud-computing server) or one or more ofPBDs 532-538, NMDs 512-516, CR 522, or any other device describedherein.

In some embodiments, receiving the first biometric data representing theone or more first biological characteristics of the individual duringthe first time period may involve the computing device receiving thefirst biometric data from one or more wearable devices (e.g., wearabledevice 700) or mobile computing devices (e.g., smart phone). Thecomputing device may receive the first biometric data over a networkinterface (e.g., wireless LAN or Bluetooth), and/or a wired interface,such as Universal Serial Bus (USB), among other interfaces generallyknown in the art. Within examples, the computing device may receivebiometric data corresponding to various biological characteristics suchas blood pressure, pulse, perspiration, blood oxygen level, temperature,electrocardiogram and/or electromyography, among other biometric data.Other biometric data may include data from sensors such as anaccelerometer and/or a gyroscope, among other sensors that can beembedded into or otherwise connected to a wearable device or mobilecomputing device.

As noted above, receiving the first biometric data representing the oneor more first biological characteristics of the individual may involvethe computing device receiving the first biometric data from one or moresensors integrated with PBDs 532-538, NMDs 512-516, CR 522, or any otherdevice described herein. In some implementations, the one or moresensors may include active sensors, such as GPS to detect the positionor location of an individual, and infrared sensors to detect movement(or an individual) or control PBDs 532-538 and/or NMDs 512-516. In otherimplementations, the one or more sensors may include passive sensorsthat might reduce cost, power, and/or footprint of the sensors and/ordevices described herein compared with active sensors. In someinstances, one or more sensors may measure the position or location ofan individual or a plurality of individuals in a given environment. U.S.application Ser. No. 13/340,126 entitled, “Sound Field Calibration UsingListener Localization,” which is hereby incorporated by reference,provides example systems and methods to measure position of anindividual or a plurality of individuals.

In other instances, the one or more sensors may utilize datacorresponding to Bluetooth, a millimeter wave scanner, an infraredlaser, electromagnetic radiation, a camera, or a microphone, among otherpossibilities. In some examples, the one or more sensors may includeBluetooth to detect proximity of an individual and a millimeter wavescanner to detect an individual's presence. In other examples, the oneor more sensors may include an infrared laser light for depth-mapping.The computing device may construct a depth map by analyzing a specklepattern or the infrared light, which may indicate the number and/orrelative locations of individuals within a given environment representedby the depth map. In further examples, the one or more sensors mayinclude one or more cameras that may include facial recognitiontechnology that utilizes facial expressions to infer mood. In stillfurther examples, the one or more sensors may include ambienttemperature sensors to detect temperature of the surroundingenvironment. Other example sensors can be integrated with one or moredevices described herein.

In some embodiments, the computing device may supplement the receivedbiometric data with additional data from various sources. For instance,the computing device may receive social media data from an individual'ssocial media account to supplement the received biometric data. Forexample, the computing device may receive social media datacorresponding to an individual's social media status, comments, friends,news feed, likes, shares, check-ins, photos, groups, and events, amongother data available via various social media services and applications.This type of data may be used to infer mood (e.g., happy), activity(e.g., studying), or occasion (e.g., birthday). In some cases, such datamight not necessarily be used to supplement sensor data, but be used inlieu of the sensor data.

In other examples, the computing device may receive a user profile tosupplement the received biometric data. User profiles can be sharedbetween any of the devices described herein via respective networkinterfaces. Example user profiles may include voice characteristics thatinclude the tone or frequency of the particular user's voice, age,gender, and user history, among other information.

In some embodiments, user history may include information specific to aparticular individual. For example, user history may include anindividual's location, proximity routines, motion history, movementroutines, playback history, play settings, usage history, and searchhistory, among other playback conditions, music properties, and/orhabits corresponding to an individual. U.S. application Ser. No.13/338,724 entitled, “Methods and Systems to Select an Audio Track,”which is hereby incorporated by reference, provides further exampleconditions that may be included in a user profile.

Additionally, user history may include information corresponding to aparticular environment. For example, user history may includeinformation indicating that a particular media content was playing in aparticular room in the household (e.g., living room in FIG. 1). Withinexamples, user history may include information indicating what playbacksettings were used when the particular media content was being played inthe particular room in the household. Still within examples, userhistory may include information indicating the weather, time of day,and/or worldwide news events that occurred when the particular mediacontent was being played. User history may be tied to a particular userprofile (e.g., a user profile of a cloud service) to facilitate sharingof the user history among devices and/or services.

b. Correlate One or More First Biological Characteristics with ListeningState

At block 804, implementation 800 involves correlating the one or morefirst biological characteristics with a listening state. For instance,the computing device may correlate the one or more first biologicalcharacteristics of the individual with a listening state of theindividual. A listening state may be based on, for example, anindividual's mood (e.g., happy, sad), location, activity level (e.g.,running, sleeping), and/or the general mood or activity level of aparticular environment (e.g., household, living room of a household).Additionally, a listening state may be based on weather, time of day, anevent, or a playback setting or configuration setting of one or morePBDs 532-538 and NMDs 512-516.

In some implementations, a set of listening states may be pre-defined.Each pre-defined listening state may correspond to one or morebiological characteristics. For instance, one pre-defined listeningstate may correspond to a happy mood. Another pre-defined listeningstate may correspond to both a happy mood and a high activity level(e.g., dancing). Another pre-defined listening state may correspond to(i) a happy mood, (ii) a high activity level, and (iii) the presence ofmultiple persons with similar moods and activity levels within a givenenvironment. Yet further listening states may correspond to a calm mood,a low activity level (e.g., stationary for a given period), and/or ageneral calm mood and low activity level of nearby individuals. Manyexamples are possible.

Correlating the one or more first biological characteristics with alistening state may involve determining which particular listening statecorresponds to the one or more first biological characteristics.Particular moods, activity levels, and/or other characteristics may beassociated with respective thresholds. Biometric data indicating that agiven threshold is exceeded may indicate that a certain characteristicis present (e.g., that an individual is in a certain mood or has aparticular activity level). Exceeding one or more thresholds associatedwith a particular pre-defined listening state may indicate that theparticular listening state is present.

As noted above, in some instances, the computing device may correlatethe one or more first biological characteristics with an individual'smood. For example, after the computing device infers or determines thatthe individual is happy or in a celebratory mood, the computing devicemay correlate such a mood with the received one or more first biologicalcharacteristics. Similarly, in other instances, the computing device maycorrelate the one or more first biological characteristics with anindividual's location and/or level of activity.

Multiple iterations of correlating a listening state with one or morebiological characteristics may allow the computing device to create abiometric profile corresponding to the individual's characteristics. Theindividual's characteristics may be adaptively learned over time bycorrelating listening states with one or more biologicalcharacteristics. For example, the computing device may learn that aparticular set of biological characteristics are repeatedly correlatedwith an individual playing a particular genre of music. If the computingdevice receives biometric data corresponding to the particular set ofbiological characteristics in the future, the computing device may inferor determine that the individual is likely listening to the particulargenre of music (or would perhaps like to listen to that type of music).

The biometric profile corresponding to the characteristics of anindividual may be compared with one or more other individuals. In someinstances, biometric profiles may be cross-correlated between two ormore individuals according to demographics. Such a comparison and/orcross-correlation between two or more individuals may, for example,allow the computing device to group particular individuals who like,dislike, or prefer particular media content.

As noted above, correlating the one or more first biologicalcharacteristics of an individual with a listening state of theindividual may involve the computing device determining the listeningstate based on a level of activity of the individual in a givenenvironment in which one or more playback devices are playing back mediacontent. For example, the received first biometric data representing theone or more first biological characteristics of the individual mayindicate that the individual is listening to media content while on atreadmill or exercising. The computing device may make such adetermination based on, for example, the heart rate, step count, bloodpressure, and/or blood oxygen level, among other biometric data. Basedon such movement or level of activity, the computing device maydetermine the listening state.

In another example, the received first biometric data representing theone or more first biological characteristics of the individual mayindicate that the individual is listening to media content while sittingat a particular location within a particular environment. For instance,the received biometric data may indicate that the individual is in asitting position, perhaps on or near the living room couch, whilelistening to media content. Based on such an indication, the computingdevice may determine the listening state.

Within examples, based on the individual's level of activity, thecomputing device may determine whether the individual is in an attentivelistening state or an inattentive listening state. An inattentivelistening state may be, for example, a state in which the individual isnot actively listening to a particular song or media content via PBDs532-538. For instance, an individual who is on a treadmill, exercising,or moving around in a particular environment may be in an inattentivelistening state. On the other hand, an attentive listening state may be,for example, a state in which the individual is actively listening to aparticular song or media content via PBDs 532-538. For instance, anindividual sitting at a particular location within a particularenvironment, perhaps to watch a movie or listen to a new album, may bein an attentive listening state.

Correlating the one or more first biological characteristics of anindividual with a listening state of the individual may involve thecomputing device determining the listening state based on a noise levelof the given environment. The computing device may receive biometricdata corresponding to the noise level of the given environment (e.g.,noise level detected via one or more microphones). For example, thecomputing device may receive data corresponding to a high noise level(e.g., treadmill, wind, loud conversation, people moving around (e.g.,dancing) and may determine the listening state accordingly.

Within examples, based on the noise level of the given environment (andperhaps the individual's level of activity), the computing device maydetermine whether the individual is in an attentive listening state oran inattentive listening state. For instance, an individual may be in anattentive listening state when there is very little ambient noise. Onthe other hand, the individual may be in an inattentive listening statewhen there is a lot of ambient noise in the given environment.

In further embodiments, correlating the one or more first biologicalcharacteristics of an individual with a listening state of theindividual may involve the computing device (i) determining a currentmood of the individual based on the one or more first biologicalcharacteristics, and (ii) correlating the current mood of the individualwith the listening state. In some examples, the computing device mayinfer that an individual is in a down mood based on the one or morefirst biological characteristics, which may indicate that the individualhas poor posture and/or is moving slowly. The computing device may thencorrelate the mood with the listening state. In other examples, thecomputing device may infer that an individual is a happy or a positivemood based on facial recognition biometric data representing one or morefirst biological characteristics. The computing device may thencorrelate the mood with the listening state. In further examples, thecomputing device may infer a particular mood of an individual based onthe tone of the individual's voice, level of activity, or social mediacontent as noted above.

Correlating the one or more first biological characteristics of anindividual with a listening state of the individual may involve thecomputing device determining a current mood or level of activity in aparticular environment. In some instances, the computing device maydetermine the current mood or level of activity in a particularenvironment by determining the mood of one or more individuals in thehousehold.

In some examples, the computing device may determine the current mood ofa particular environment, such as a household, by determining the moodof one or more individuals in the household to infer an average mood inthe household. For instance, referring back to FIG. 1 a first individualmay be in a sitting position watching a movie in the Living Room, asecond individual may be sleeping in the Master Bedroom, and a thirdindividual may be working in the Office. The computing device maydetermine the mood of each individual in respective zones or rooms basedon respective one or more biological characteristics of the individuals.Based on the mood of each individual in respective zones, the computingdevice may determine that the household is in a relaxed or calm mood.

In other examples, the computing device may determine the current mood,activity, or level of activity in the particular environment based on acombination of one or more biological characteristics of respectiveindividuals and the time of day, events, weather, among other factors.In example operations, PBD 116 in the bathroom of FIG. 1 may include oneor more sensors that detect biometric data, including proximity data.One or more individuals may be walking in and out of the bathroom earlyin the morning. The computing device may receive such biometric datafrom PBD 116, and based on the biometric data received from PBD 116, thecomputing device may determine that there is an increased level ofactivity in the bathroom early in the morning. Accordingly, thecomputing device may infer that the household is getting ready for theday, which might correspond to a particular playback state.

In other example operations, PBDs 122 and/or 124 may send biometric datato the computing device indicating that a first individual is sleepingin the master bedroom, and PBD 120 and/or control device 128 may sendbiometric data to the computing device indicating that a secondindividual is sleeping in the bedroom. As noted above, the computingdevice may determine that the family in the household is sleeping bytaking the average mood of the first and second individual.Alternatively or for an additional level of confidence, the computingdevice may determine that the family in the household is sleeping basedon determining that (i) it is late at night and (ii) the first andsecond individuals are in a resting state (e.g., slow movement andrelatively low blood oxygen levels).

In further example scenarios, biological characteristics of individualsin a household may vary. For instance, PBDs 122 and/or 124 may sendbiometric data to the computing device indicating that a firstindividual is sleeping in the Master Bedroom. Concurrently, PBDs 106and/or 108 in the Living Room may send biometric data to the computingdevice indicating that a second individual and a third individual havean increased level of activity and may be in an excited mood. Thecomputing device may determine that the second and third individuals arehaving a party in the living room based on a combination of factors suchas current events (e.g., Super Bowl), interests of the individuals(e.g., football), time of day, or calendar events of the individuals(e.g., scheduled events in the calendar of the respective individuals).The interests of the respective individuals and calendar events might beprovided in the user profile or social media profile of the respectiveindividuals.

In further examples, the computing device may anticipate the activity,activity level, or mood of the household based on a combination offactors such as interests of the individuals, time of day, currentevents, calendar events, and biological patterns of a given individualwhich may be included in a biometric profile. The biological patterns ofa given individual in the household may be learned over time and may becorrelated with certain activities within the household. In exampleoperations, the computing device may anticipate that the family in thehousehold will be sleeping or in a resting state during a particulartime period (e.g., from 10:00 PM to 8:00 AM) based on the biologicalpatterns of a given individual in the household. Additionally, for anadditional level of confidence, the computing device may anticipate thatthe family in the household will be sleeping at a particular time atnight based on determining that there are no calendar events (e.g.,party) and/or current events (e.g. Super Bowl) that may be of interestto a given individual in the household.

Correlating the one or more first biological characteristics of anindividual with a listening state of the individual may involve thecomputing device determining the listening state based on theindividual's social media account or social media services in which theindividual is subscribed. As noted above, the computing device mayreceive social media data gleaned from the individual's social mediaaccount to supplement the received biometric data. In some instances,based on the content of an individual's social media status, comments,or posts, the computing device may determine the individual's locationor zone. For example, the individual may post, “I love spending time inmy new basement,” on one or more social media services that theindividual is subscribed to. Based on the content of the individual'spost, the computing device may infer that the individual is in thebasement.

In other instances, based on the content of an individual's social mediastatus, comments or posts, the computing device may determine theindividual's mood. For example, the individual may post, “I ate a donut,life is good,” on one or more social media accounts. Based on thecontent of the individual's post, the computing device may infer thatthe individual is happy or generally in a good mood. In another example,the individual may post an emoji, or provide an indication that theindividual likes, loves, or dislikes another individual's social mediastatus. Based on such social media activity of the individual, thecomputing device may infer the individual's mood accordingly.

In some examples, the computing device may infer the individual's moodbased on comments or posts of another individual. Within examples, aparticular individual may post, “I'm sorry for your loss,” on anindividual's profile or in a post in which the individual is tagged.Based on the content of the post, the computing device may infer thatthe individual is sad or generally in a somber mood. In another example,multiple individuals may be posting comments on one or more social mediaservices to congratulate the individual. Accordingly, the computingdevice may determine that the individual is in a celebratory mood.

In further examples, the computing device may infer the individual'smood based on social media groups in which the individual is associatedwith, or particular individuals or groups in which the individualfollows on one or more social media services. For example, theindividual may be following a particular football team. After theparticular football team beats another football team, the computingdevice may infer that the individual is happy or in a celebratory mood.

In further instances, based on the content of an individual's socialmedia status, comments or posts, the computing device may determine theindividual's level of activity. For example, the individual may post, “Ihad a long day at work,” on one or more social media services. Based onthe content of the individual's post, the computing device may inferthat the individual is tired, exhausted, or low on energy.

In still further instances, based on the content of an individual'ssocial media status, comments or posts, the computing device may predictor anticipate the individual's mood, activity level, and/or location.For example, the individual may post, “I can't wait to watch my favoritefootball team tomorrow with my friends in my new basement,” on one ormore social media services. Based on the content of the post, thecomputing device may infer that the individual will be in the basementtomorrow at a particular time to watch a particular football team play.The computing device may further infer that that the individual willgenerally be in an excited mood at the particular time.

In another example, the individual may post, “Today was exhausting. I'mgoing to sleep in until noon tomorrow,” on one or more social mediaservices. Based on the content of the post, the computing device mayinfer that the individual will be in a resting mood or sleeping untilnoon tomorrow (which is perhaps later than the individual wouldotherwise be expected to sleep). Other examples of determining anindividual's mood, location, and activity level based on social mediadata are possible.

In some embodiments, correlating the one or more first biologicalcharacteristics of an individual with a listening state of theindividual may involve the computing device correlating the one or morefirst biological characteristics of the individual with the listeningstate of the individual in a user profile associated with theindividual. As noted above, the computing device may receive a userprofile to supplement the received biometric data.

c. Receive Second Biometric Data Representing One or More SecondBiological Characteristic During Second Time Period

At block 806, implementation 800 involves receiving second biometricdata representing one or more second biological characteristics of theindividual during a second time period. For instance, after correlatingthe one or more first biological characteristics of the individual witha listening state of the individual, the computing device may receivesecond biometric data representing one or more second biologicalcharacteristics of the individual.

The computing device may receive the second biometric data in the sameor similar manner in which the computing device receives the firstbiometric data as described above. For instance, the computing devicemay receive the second biometric data from one or more wearable devicesand/or from one or more sensors integrated with PBDs 532-538, NMDs512-516, CR 522, or any other device described herein.

d. Determining that the One or More Second Biological CharacteristicsCorresponds to the One or More First Biological Characteristics

At block 808, implementation 800 involves determining that the one ormore second biological characteristics corresponds to the one or morefirst biological characteristics. For instance, after receiving thesecond biometric data representing one or more second biologicalcharacteristics, the computing device may determine that the one or moresecond biological characteristics corresponds to the one or more firstbiological characteristics.

As noted above, iterations of correlating a listening state with one ormore biological characteristics may allow the computing device to createa biometric profile corresponding to the individual's biologicalcharacteristics. In some embodiments, after correlating the one or morefirst biological characteristics of the individual with the listeningstate of the individual, the computing device, such as computing device506 (e.g., configured as a cloud computing server) may store thecorrelated data in a biometric profile within a user profilecorresponding to the individual. In other embodiments, the computingdevice may cause PBDs 532-538, NMDs 512-516, CR 522, or any otherdevice, system, or server described herein to store the correlated datacorresponding to the individual.

After receiving the second biometric data representing one or moresecond biological characteristics, the computing device may compare theone or more second biological characteristics to the one or more firstbiological characteristics of the individual correlated with a listeningstate. In some embodiments, the computing device may determine that theone or more second biological characteristics corresponds to the one ormore first biological characteristics. Based on the determination, thecomputing device may initiate an action at block 810 described in moredetail herein.

In some examples, determining that the one or more second biologicalcharacteristics of a particular individual corresponds to the one ormore first biological characteristics of the particular individual mayinvolve the computing device determining the identity of the individual.The computing device may determine the identity of the individual amonga plurality of biometric profiles of individuals that may be stored inthe computing device or any other device described herein. In someinstances, the computing device may distinguish the identity of theindividual from other individuals based on biometric data associatedwith the heartbeat pattern or heart rate of the individual (e.g.,electrocardiogram data). Each individual's heartbeat may be unique andeach individual's heartbeat pattern may vary based on each individual'sheart's size, shape, and position within the body.

In other embodiments, the computing device may determine that the one ormore second biological characteristics does not correspond to the one ormore first biological characteristics of the individual. In someexamples, based on such determination, the computing device maycorrelate the one or more second biological characteristics of theindividual with another listening state. The computing device may storeor cause another device to store the correlated data in the biometricprofile or user profile corresponding to the individual to continue tobuild upon a comprehensive biometric profile corresponding to theindividual's characteristics.

Within examples, in some instances, the correlated data of the one ormore second biological characteristics with a listening state mayconflict with previously correlated data of the one or more firstbiological characteristics with the listening state. In particular, therespective biological characteristics may indicate that the individualis tired, but the respective biological characteristics may not matcheach other (e.g., slightly different blood oxygen level). In suchinstances, the computing device may update the biometric profilecorresponding to the individual by replacing the previously correlateddata between one or more first biological characteristics and alistening state with the correlated data between one or more secondbiological characteristics and the listening state. Alternatively, thecomputing device may associate, combine, and/or average each correlateddata to build upon a comprehensive biometric profile corresponding tothe individual.

e. Initiating Playback Setting Corresponding to the Listening State thatwas Correlated with the One or More First Biological Characteristics

At block 810, implementation 800 involves initiating a playback settingcorresponding to the listening state that was correlated with the one ormore first biological characteristics. For instance, based ondetermining that the one or more second biological characteristicscorresponds to the one or more first biological characteristics of theindividual, the computing device may initiate a playback settingcorresponding to the listening state that was correlated with the one ormore first biological characteristics.

As noted above, a playback setting may include, for example, a settingto play or pause an audio track, play the next or previous audio track,modify the playback volume and/or EQ settings, among other settings thatmay be modified via the media playback system. For instance, a playbacksetting may include a setting to add audio tracks to a playlist orplayback queue, remove or change the order of audio tracks in a playlistor playback queue, modify one or more playback zones, initiatecalibration of a playback device, or select content from a particularcloud service described in more detail herein.

In some embodiments, initiating a playback setting corresponding to thelistening state that was correlated with the one or more firstbiological characteristics may involve the computing device causing oneor more PBDs 532-538 to play back media content in a given environment.In some examples, based on determining that the one or more first andsecond biological characteristics (i) correspond to each other and (ii)indicate that the individual is in a somber or sad mood, the computingdevice may cause one or more PBDs 532-538 to play media content thatwould cheer up the individual. Within examples, the individual may be inthe living room of FIG. 1. Based on the location and mood of theindividual, the computing device may cause PBDs 106 and 108 to playmedia content that would cheer up the individual.

In other embodiments, initiating a playback setting corresponding to thelistening state that was correlated with the one or more firstbiological characteristics may involve the computing device causing oneor more PBDs 532-538 and/or NMDs 512-516 to adjust a listening setting.In some examples, based on determining that the one or more first andsecond biological characteristics (i) correspond to each other and also(ii) indicate that the individual is in an attentive listening state,the computing device may cause PBDs 532-538 and/or NMDs 512-516 (e.g.,those that are in the zone of the individual or proximate to theindividual) to tune for attentive listening. In some instances, thecomputing device may cause PBDs 532-538 and/or NMDs 512-516 that are inthe zone of the individual to amplify sound in the direction of theindividual and attenuate sound in other directions. Additionally, thecomputing device may steer one or more microphones of respective PBDs532-538 and/or NMDs 512-516 in the direction of the individual to listenfor additional voice commands from the individual. In other instances,the computing device may optimize one or more equalization settings ofPBDs 532-538 and/or NMDs 512-516 for critical listening within theparticular environment in which the individual is located.

In other examples, based on determining that the one or more first andsecond biological characteristics (i) correspond to each other and (ii)indicate that the individual is in an attentive listening state, thecomputing device may cause CR 522 to display recommended media contentthat the individual may enjoy. The recommend media content may bedetermined based on the media content that is currently playing and/orthe current mood of the individual. In some instances, the computingdevice may generate a new playlist that includes a plurality ofrecommended media content that the individual may enjoy. In otherinstances, the computing device may add recommended media content thatthe individual may enjoy to a playback queue in order to cause one ormore PBDs 532-538 to play the recommended media content following thecurrent media content.

In further examples, based on determining that the one or more first andsecond biological characteristics (i) correspond to each other and (ii)indicate that the individual is in an inattentive listening state, thecomputing device may cause PBDs 532-538 and/or NMDs 512-516 that are inthe zone of the individual or proximate to the individual to tune forinattentive or passive listening. For instance, the computing device maylower the volume or adjust the equalization settings of PBDs 532-538and/or NMDs 512-516. Other types of playback control are possible aswell.

In still further examples, based on determining that the one or morefirst and second biological characteristics (i) correspond to each otherand (ii) indicate that the individual is in an inattentive listeningstate, the computing device may generate a new playlist that includes aplurality of media content for the individual. The plurality of mediacontent may be chosen for passive listening. Within examples, theplurality of media content may be classic or well-known songs, or slowertempo songs, among other possible types of audio content.

In additional examples, the individual may provide an indication ofwhether the individual is in an attentive or inattentive state. In someinstances, the individual may provide such an indication by selecting aninput or setting displayed on a control device, such as CR 522. In otherinstances, the individual may provide such an indication by providing avoice command (e.g., “Hey Sonos, attentive listening.”). The computingdevice (and/or one or more of NMDs 512-516) may receive the voicecommand and generate a new playlist that includes a plurality of mediacontent. Additionally or alternatively, the computing device may add oneor more media content to the playback queue in order to cause one ormore PBDs 532-538 to play the one or more media content following thecurrent media content that is playing.

In further embodiments, initiating a playback setting corresponding tothe listening state that was correlated with the one or more firstbiological characteristics may involve the computing device keeping astatus of one or more individuals in a household. Based on the status ofone or more individuals in the household, the computing device mayinitiate a playback setting. For instance, if multiple individuals arein a certain listening state (e.g., inattentive), the computing devicemay initiate play back of media content corresponding to that state. Asanother example, if multiple individuals are in different listeningstates but located in different zones, the computing device may initiaterespective playback settings for each zone. Many examples are possible.

In some examples, based on one or more biological characteristics of agiven individual in a household, the computing device may keep a statustable of the individuals who reside in the house or have a user profileassociated with the household. In example operations, a first individualmay be sleeping in the master bedroom in FIG. 1, a second individual maybe awake in the living room, and a third individual may be outside,perhaps at work. Based on the biometric data representing one or morebiological characteristics of each individual, the computing device maydetermine that the first and second individuals are in the household,while the third individual is not in the household. Additionally, thecomputing device may determine that the first individual is asleep,while the second individual is awake. Furthermore, the computing devicemay determine whether the second individual is in an attentive orinattentive listening state. Still further, the computing device maydetermine the current mood of the second individual (e.g., happy, sad).Based on the foregoing determinations, the computing device may generateand store a status table of the individuals.

In other examples, the computing device may update the status tablebased on a change in one or more biological characteristics of a givenindividual in a household. In example operations, the first individualthat was sleeping in the master bedroom may have woken up, and the thirdindividual who was outside the household may have returned. Thecomputing device may determine that the first individual is awake andthe third individual is available in the household. Additionally, thecomputing device may determine whether the first and third individualsare in an attentive or inattentive state. Furthermore, the computingdevice may determine the current mood of the individuals in thehousehold. Based on the foregoing determinations, the computing devicemay update the status table.

In some instances, the status table may be displayed via CR 522. CR 522may provide indications of the status of each individual. In someexamples, CR 522 may display text and/or emojis indicating whether anindividual is available, the current mood of an individual, level ofactivity of an individual, or any other information that may beextracted from one or more biological characteristics of an individual.

In further examples, the computing device may alert or cause anotherdevice (e.g., CR 522) to alert an individual that another individual haswoken up. In example operations, a baby may have been asleep in thebedroom. When the baby wakes up, the computing device may cause CR 522to alert the parent that the baby is awake. Within examples, thecomputing device may cause CR 522 to notify the parent that the baby isawake by providing a sound alert, vibration, or text notification, amongother examples. Additionally or alternatively, the computing device maycause PBDs 532-538 and/or NMDs 512-516 to alert the parent that the babyis awake by providing a sound alert (e.g., playing particular mediacontent, sound tones, or voice notifications).

In some embodiments, initiating a playback setting corresponding to thelistening state that was correlated with the one or more firstbiological characteristics may involve the computing device causing theplayback devices (e.g., PBDs 532-538) to play particular media contentor preventing the playback devices from playing media content. Inexample operations, an individual may be playing media content via PBDs122 and 124 in the master bedroom in FIG. 1. After a certain timeperiod, the individual may fall asleep in the master bedroom. Inresponse, the computing device may cause PBDs 122 and 124 to stopplaying media content. Alternatively, the computing device may causePBDs 122 and 124 to play different media content based on theindividual's sleep cycle. In some instances, the computing device maycause PBDs 122 and 124 to play nature sounds or white noise while theindividual is asleep.

When the individual wakes up, the computing device may cause PBDs 122and 124 to start playing media content that was being played before theindividual fell asleep. Alternatively, the computing device may causePBDs 122 and 124 to start playing media content based on one or morebiological characteristics of the individual and/or other factors, suchas the time of day. In some examples, the computing device may causePBDs 122 and 124 to play media content that would energize theindividual. In other examples, the computing device may cause PBDs 122and 124 to play media content that are typically on the individual'smorning playlist based on the status of the individual (e.g., awake) andthe time of day (e.g., morning).

In other example operations, based on the status of the individuals inthe household, the computing device may cause some playback devices inthe household to play media content, while preventing other playbackdevices in the household from playing media content. In particular, afirst individual may be in the living room in FIG. 1 and a secondindividual may be asleep in the bedroom. The first individual mayprovide a voice command to an NMD in the living room or PBD 106 (whichmay be configured as an NMD). The voice command may be a command to playmedia content in every zone or room in the household (e.g., “Hey Sonos,play Michael Jackson in party mode.”). Based on determining that thesecond individual is asleep in the bedroom, the computing device mayprevent PBD 120 which in the bedroom from playing media content, whilecausing other PBDs in the household to play media content. Additionally,the computing device may tune the PBDs in the household to attenuatesound in the direction of the bedroom. In some instances, the computingdevice may reduce the volume of nearby PBDs (e.g., PBD 118 in the officeand PBD 116 in the bathroom) and/or adjust the equalization settingsthroughout the household to reduce the bass level.

In further example operations, based on the status and location of theindividuals in the household, the computing device may limit the numberof zones or rooms that may be selected to play media content. Inparticular, a first individual may be in the living room in FIG. 1 and asecond individual may be asleep in the bedroom. The first individual maywish to group multiple zones within the household via CR 522 to playmedia content throughout the multiple zones. Based on determining thatthe second individual is asleep in the bedroom, the computing device mayprevent the first individual from selecting the bedroom zone via CR 522.In some instances, CR 522 may display the bedroom zone but may indicatethat the bedroom zone is not selectable for playback because the secondindividual is asleep in the bedroom. In other instances, CR 522 may notdisplay the bedroom zone. In further instances, CR 522 may separatelydisplay zones that are available and zones that are not available. Otherexample indications are possible.

IV. Example Systems and Methods for Multimedia Experience with CloudServices According to Biometrics

In further embodiments, the computing device may provide biometric datarepresenting one or more biological characteristics of an individual tocloud services. The biometric data representing the one or morebiological characteristics of the individual may correspond to cloudservice content, products, and/or data. As noted above, such biometricdata of individuals may provide additional insights to cloud services toimprove algorithms in recommending new media content or improvingdiscovery of media content and/or advertisements which may be tailoredto particular individuals based on characteristics of the individual(e.g., current mood).

Example cloud services may include media service providers (e.g.,Pandora® Radio, Spotify®, Slacker®, Radio, Google Play™, iTunes Radio),and smart device manufacturers (e.g., Nest®), among other cloudservices. The computing device may provide biometric data to such cloudservices by establishing a metadata exchange channel between thecomputing device and the cloud services. U.S. application Ser. No.15/131,244 entitled, “Metadata exchange involving a networked playbacksystem and a networked microphone system,” which is hereby incorporatedby reference in its entirety, provides examples of metadata exchangearchitectures.

In some instances, the computing device may provide unprocessedbiometric data representing one or more biological characteristics of anindividual to a cloud service. The cloud service may then make its owninsights based on the received one or more biological characteristics ofthe individual. In other instances, the computing device may process thebiometric data by, for example, correlating the one or more firstbiological characteristics of the individual with a listening state ofthe individual. The computing device may then send the correlated datato the cloud service.

In some embodiments, initiating a playback setting corresponding to thelistening state that was correlated with the one or more firstbiological characteristics may involve the computing device sending arequest for media content to a media service provider. In someinstances, the computing device may send the request for media contentwith the received biometric data representing one or more biologicalcharacteristics of an individual. In other instances, the computingdevice may send the request for media content with the listening stateof the individual that was correlated with the one or more firstbiological characteristics of the individual. After sending the requestfor media content, the computing device may receive the requested mediacontent from the media service provider and cause one or more playbackdevices to play the media content. The requested media content maycorrespond to the listening state of the individual that was correlatedwith the one or more first biological characteristics of the individual.

In example operations, an individual may send a voice command to one ofNMDs 512-516 to cause one or more of PBDs 532-538 to play media content(e.g., “Hey Sonos, play some music.”). In response, the computing devicemay send a request for media content to a media service provider. Insome instances, the computing device may send the request for mediacontent with an indication of the individual's mood (e.g., sad, happy).In other instances, the computing device may send the request for mediacontent with the received biometric data representing one or morecharacteristics of the individual to allow the cloud service to drivebiometric insights and perhaps determine the mood of the individual.After sending the request for media content to the media serviceprovider, the computing device may receive the requested media contentand cause the one or more of PBDs 532-538 to play the received mediacontent. As noted above, based on the status of the individuals in thehousehold (e.g., sleeping or awake), the computing device may cause someof the PBDs 532-538 to play the received media content, while preventingother PBDs 532-538 from playing the received media content.

The received media content may be based on the individual's mood. Inparticular, if the individual is in a sad mood, the computing device mayreceive media content that might improve the individual's mood. Mediacontent that may improve the individual's mood may include, for example,a station (e.g., radio station, playlist) that includes upbeat mediacontent, or media content that the individual previously played andliked (e.g., provided a “thumbs up” indication).

In some embodiments, the computing device may facilitate discovery ofmedia content based on biometric data representing one or morecharacteristics of the individual. In some examples, the computingdevice may determine that the individual reacted positively to a cloudservice media content, product, and/or service based on the receivedbiometric data representing one or more characteristics of theindividual (e.g., facial recognition data, individual dancing, voicedata indicating that the individual likes the current song that isplaying). Additionally or alternatively, the computing device maydetermine that the individual moved from an inattentive state to anattentive state. The computing device may send such biometric datacorresponding to the individual's mood and/or current state to one ormore cloud services. In response, the one or more cloud services mayprovide advertisement content associated with the content, product,and/or service in which the individual reacted positively.

Within examples, the individual might have reacted positively to mediacontent that is currently playing. The computing device may provide suchdata to the media service provider that provides such media content.After providing such data, the computing device may receiveadvertisement content tailored to the individual who reacted positivelyto the media content that is currently playing. In some examples, thecomputing device may receive data corresponding to the artist of themedia content that is currently playing. The computing device may causeCR 522 to display such data. In some instances, the computing device maycause CR 522 to display such data when the individual is in an attentivestate (e.g., awake). In particular, CR 522 may provide one or moreindications corresponding to albums that the artist has released, andconcerts in which the artist is playing or has played in, among otherinformation corresponding to the artist. Additionally or alternatively,the computing device may cause one or more social media serviceproviders to provide social media updates corresponding to the artist onone or more social media accounts of the individual.

Other examples relating to discovery of media content and tailoredadvertisements are possible. In some instances, the computing device maydetermine that the individual consistently reacts positively to mediacontent from a particular artist. After providing such biometric data toone or more media service providers, the computing device may receiveadvertisement content corresponding to another artist that sharessimilar qualities with the particular artist. Additionally oralternatively, the computing device may receive advertisement contentcorresponding to another artist that the individual tends to reactpositively to based on the individual's biometric profile or userprofile (e.g., biometric data history).

In some embodiments, the computing device may repeatedly provide, to amedia service provider, biometric data representing one or morebiological characteristics of an individual or correlated data of thelistening state of the individual and the one or more first biologicalcharacteristics of the individual. In some cases, such provision may becontinual during a period of time (e.g., while a individual is in acertain location (e.g., their home) or while they are using a certaindevice (e.g., their media playback system). Repeatedly providing suchbiometric data or correlated data to the media service provider mayallow the computing device to provide valuable, real-time insights tothe media service provider.

In example operations, an individual may be playing a particular mediacontent in the household. The particular media content may correspond toa particular media service provider. Based on the biometric orcorrelated biometric data that is continually being provided to themedia service provider, the media service provider may determine thatthe individual is having a positive response to the particular mediacontent that is playing in the household. Alternatively, the computingdevice may determine and provide the media service with an indicationthat the individual is having a positive response to the particularmedia content that is playing in the household. In response, thecomputing device may cause the media service provider to indicate thatthe individual is having a positive response to the particular mediacontent that is playing. In some instances, the media service providermay provide such an indication by providing a “thumbs up” indicationcorresponding to the particular media content.

In other embodiments, the computing device may provide normalizedbiometric data to the media service provider based on a time domain. Thenormalized biometric data may disambiguate noise within the biometricdata by taking into account of previous biometric data associated withprevious media content, along with the current biometric data associatedwith current media content that is being played by an individual.

In example operations, an individual might have provided a high ratingor a “thumbs up” indication corresponding to the current media contentthat is playing. The individual, however, might have provided a highrating or a “thumbs up” indication corresponding to the previous fourmedia content that were playing. Based on the individual's actionsassociated with the current and previous media content, the computingdevice may determine that the individual is perhaps in a good mood andmight be providing such a high rating or a “thumbs up” indication inresponse to the individual's mood. Based on such determination, thecomputing device may provide normalized biometric data to the mediaservice provider so that the media service provider does not extract toomuch information from the individual's high rating or “thumbs up”indication corresponding to the current or previous four media content.

V. Conclusion

The description above discloses, among other things, various examplesystems, methods, apparatus, and articles of manufacture including,among other components, firmware and/or software executed on hardware.It is understood that such examples are merely illustrative and shouldnot be considered as limiting. For example, it is contemplated that anyor all of the firmware, hardware, and/or software aspects or componentscan be embodied exclusively in hardware, exclusively in software,exclusively in firmware, or in any combination of hardware, software,and/or firmware. Accordingly, the examples provided are not the onlyway(s) to implement such systems, methods, apparatus, and/or articles ofmanufacture.

(Feature 1) A method comprising receiving first biometric datarepresenting one or more first biological characteristics of anindividual during a first time period; correlating the one or more firstbiological characteristics of the individual with a listening state ofthe individual; receiving second biometric data representing one or moresecond biological characteristics of the individual during a second timeperiod, wherein the first time period precedes the second time period;determining that the one or more second biological characteristicscorresponds to the one or more first biological characteristics; andbased on the determination, initiating a playback setting correspondingto the listening state of the individual that was correlated with theone or more first biological characteristics of the individual.

(Feature 2) The method of feature of any preceding feature, whereinreceiving the first biometric data representing the one or more firstbiological characteristics of the individual during the first timeperiod comprises receiving, via the computing device over a networkinterface from one or more wearable computing devices, datacorresponding to at least one of following: (i) blood pressure, (ii)pulse, (iii) perspiration; (iv) blood oxygen level, (v) anaccelerometer, (vi) a gyroscope, (vii) an electrocardiogram, (viii)electromyography, or (ix) temperature.

(Feature 3) The method of feature of any preceding feature, whereinreceiving the first biometric data representing the one or more firstbiological characteristics of the individual during the first timeperiod comprises: detecting, via one or more sensors of the computingdevice, data corresponding to at least one of following: (i) Wi-Fi, (ii)Bluetooth, (iii) a millimeter wave scanner, (iv) an infrared laser, (v)electromagnetic radiation, (vi) a camera, (vii) a microphone, (viii)temperature, or (ix) perspiration.

(Feature 4) The method of feature of any preceding feature, whereinreceiving the first biometric data representing the one or more firstbiological characteristics of the individual during the first timeperiod comprises: receiving, via the computing device, datacorresponding to a social media account of the individual, wherein thedata comprises social media updates of the individual; and whereincorrelating the one or more first biological characteristics of theindividual with the listening state of the individual comprises:determining, via the computing device, the listening state based oncontent of the social media updates of the individual.

(Feature 5) The method of feature of any preceding feature, whereincorrelating the one or more first biological characteristics of theindividual with the listening state of the individual comprises:correlating, via the computing device, the one or more first biologicalcharacteristics of the individual with the listening state of theindividual in a user profile associated with the individual.

(Feature 6) The method of feature of any preceding feature, whereincorrelating the one or more first biological characteristics of theindividual with the listening state of the individual comprises:determining the listening state based at least on one of the following:(i) a current playback setting of one or more playback devices, (ii)weather, (iii) time of day, (iv) an event, or (v) a social media accountassociated with the individual.

(Feature 7) The method of feature of any preceding feature, whereincorrelating the one or more first biological characteristics of theindividual with the listening state of the individual comprises:determining the listening state based at least on (i) a level ofactivity of the individual in a given environment in which one or moreplayback devices are playing back media, or (ii) a noise level of thegiven environment.

(Feature 8) The method of feature of any preceding feature, whereincorrelating the one or more first biological characteristics of theindividual with the listening state of the individual comprises:determining a current mood of the individual based on the one or morefirst biological characteristics; and correlating the current mood ofthe individual with the listening state.

(Feature 9) The method of feature of any preceding feature, furthercomprising: before receiving the first biometric data representing theone or more first biological characteristics of the individual duringthe first time period, causing, via the computing device, one or moreplayback devices to play back audio in a given environment, whereindetermining the current mood of the individual based on the one or morefirst biological characteristics comprises: determining the current moodof the individual based on one or more audio characteristics of theaudio that is being played in the given environment.

(Feature 10) The method of feature of any preceding feature, furthercomprising: after correlating the one or more first biologicalcharacteristics of the individual with the listening state of theindividual, causing, via the computing device, a cloud computing systemto store the correlated data in a user profile corresponding to theindividual.

(Feature 11) The method of feature of any preceding feature, whereininitiating the playback setting corresponding to the listening state ofthe individual that was correlated with the one or more first biologicalcharacteristics of the individual comprises: causing, via the computingdevice, one or more playback devices to play back audio in a givenenvironment, wherein the audio corresponds to the listening state of theindividual that was correlated with the one or more first biologicalcharacteristics of the individual.

(Feature 12) The method of feature of any preceding feature, whereincorrelating the one or more first biological characteristics of theindividual with the listening state of the individual comprisesdetermining that the individual is in either (a) an attentive listeningstate or (b) an inattentive listening state.

(Feature 13) The method of feature of any preceding feature, wherein thesecond biometric data indicates that the individual is asleep in a givenenvironment, and wherein initiating the playback setting correspondingto the listening state of the individual comprises: preventing, via thecomputing device, one or more playback devices from playing back audioin the given environment.

(Feature 14) The method of feature of any preceding feature, whereininitiating the playback setting corresponding to the listening state ofthe individual that was correlated with the one or more first biologicalcharacteristics of the individual comprises: sending, via the computingdevice to a media service provider, a request for an audio trackcorresponding to the listening state of the individual that wascorrelated with the one or more first biological characteristics of theindividual; receiving, via the computing device from the media serviceprovider, the requested audio track corresponding to the listening stateof the individual that was correlated with the one or more firstbiological characteristics of the individual; and based on the receivedaudio tracks corresponding to the listening state of the individual thatwas correlated with the one or more first biological characteristics ofthe individual, causing, via the computing device, one or more playbackdevices to play back the audio track in the given environment.

(Feature 15) The method of feature of any preceding feature, whereinbefore receiving the first biometric data representing the one or morefirst biological characteristics of the individual during the first timeperiod, causing, via the computing device, one or more playback devicesto play back audio in a given environment, and wherein initiating theplayback setting corresponding to the listening state of the individualthat was correlated with the one or more first biologicalcharacteristics of the individual comprises: sending, via the computingdevice to a media service provider, data corresponding to the listeningstate of the individual that was correlated with the one or more firstbiological characteristics of the individual to cause the media serviceprovider to update a status associated with the audio being played inthe given environment in accordance with the listening state of theindividual that was correlated with the one or more first biologicalcharacteristics of the individual.

(Feature 16) A tangible, non-transitory computer-readable medium havingstored therein instructions executable by one or more processors tocause a device to perform the method of any of features 1-15.

(Feature 17) A device configured to perform the method of any offeatures 1-15.

(Feature 18) A media playback system configured to perform the method ofany of features 1-15.

(Feature 19) A cloud computing system configured to perform the methodof any of features 1-15.

Additionally, references herein to “embodiment” means that a particularfeature, structure, or characteristic described in connection with theembodiment can be included in at least one example embodiment of aninvention. The appearances of this phrase in various places in thespecification are not necessarily all referring to the same embodiment,nor are separate or alternative embodiments mutually exclusive of otherembodiments. As such, the embodiments described herein, explicitly andimplicitly understood by one skilled in the art, can be combined withother embodiments.

The specification is presented largely in terms of illustrativeenvironments, systems, procedures, steps, logic blocks, processing, andother symbolic representations that directly or indirectly resemble theoperations of data processing devices coupled to networks. These processdescriptions and representations are typically used by those skilled inthe art to most effectively convey the substance of their work to othersskilled in the art. Numerous specific details are set forth to provide athorough understanding of the present disclosure. However, it isunderstood to those skilled in the art that certain embodiments of thepresent disclosure can be practiced without certain, specific details.In other instances, well known methods, procedures, components, andcircuitry have not been described in detail to avoid unnecessarilyobscuring aspects of the embodiments. Accordingly, the scope of thepresent disclosure is defined by the appended claims rather than theforgoing description of embodiments.

When any of the appended claims are read to cover a purely softwareand/or firmware implementation, at least one of the elements in at leastone example is hereby expressly defined to include a tangible,non-transitory medium such as a memory, DVD, CD, Blu-ray, and so on,storing the software and/or firmware.

We claim:
 1. Tangible, non-transitory, computer-readable media havinginstructions encoded therein, wherein the instructions, when executed byone or more processors, cause a computing device to perform a methodcomprising: receiving first biometric data representing one or morefirst biological characteristics of an individual during a first timeperiod; correlating the one or more first biological characteristics ofthe individual with a listening state of the individual; receivingsecond biometric data representing one or more second biologicalcharacteristics of the individual during a second time period, whereinthe first time period precedes the second time period; determining thatthe one or more second biological characteristics corresponds to the oneor more first biological characteristics; and based on thedetermination, initiating a playback setting corresponding to thelistening state of the individual that was correlated with the one ormore first biological characteristics of the individual.
 2. Thetangible, non-transitory, computer-readable media of claim 1, whereinreceiving the first biometric data representing the one or more firstbiological characteristics of the individual during the first timeperiod comprises: receiving, via the computing device over a networkinterface from one or more wearable computing devices, datacorresponding to at least one of following: (i) blood pressure, (ii)pulse, (iii) perspiration; (iv) blood oxygen level, (v) anaccelerometer, (vi) a gyroscope, (vii) an electrocardiogram, (viii)electromyography, or (ix) temperature.
 3. The tangible, non-transitory,computer-readable media of claim 1, wherein receiving the firstbiometric data representing the one or more first biologicalcharacteristics of the individual during the first time periodcomprises: detecting, via one or more sensors of the computing device,data corresponding to at least one of following: (i) Wi-Fi, (ii)Bluetooth, (iii) a millimeter wave scanner, (iv) an infrared laser, (v)electromagnetic radiation, (vi) a camera, (vii) a microphone, (viii)temperature, or (ix) perspiration.
 4. The tangible, non-transitory,computer-readable media of claim 1, wherein receiving the firstbiometric data representing the one or more first biologicalcharacteristics of the individual during the first time periodcomprises: receiving, via the computing device, data corresponding to asocial media account of the individual, wherein the data comprisessocial media updates of the individual; and wherein correlating the oneor more first biological characteristics of the individual with thelistening state of the individual comprises: determining, via thecomputing device, the listening state based on content of the socialmedia updates of the individual.
 5. The tangible, non-transitory,computer-readable media of claim 1, wherein correlating the one or morefirst biological characteristics of the individual with the listeningstate of the individual comprises: correlating, via the computingdevice, the one or more first biological characteristics of theindividual with the listening state of the individual in a user profileassociated with the individual.
 6. The tangible, non-transitory,computer-readable media of claim 1, wherein correlating the one or morefirst biological characteristics of the individual with the listeningstate of the individual comprises: determining the listening state basedat least on one of the following: (i) a current playback setting of oneor more playback devices, (ii) weather, (iii) time of day, (iv) anevent, or (v) a social media account associated with the individual. 7.The tangible, non-transitory, computer-readable media of claim 1,wherein correlating the one or more first biological characteristics ofthe individual with the listening state of the individual comprises:determining the listening state based at least on (i) a level ofactivity of the individual in a given environment in which one or moreplayback devices are playing back media, or (ii) a noise level of thegiven environment.
 8. The tangible, non-transitory, computer-readablemedia of claim 1, wherein correlating the one or more first biologicalcharacteristics of the individual with the listening state of theindividual comprises: determining a current mood of the individual basedon the one or more first biological characteristics; and correlating thecurrent mood of the individual with the listening state.
 9. Thetangible, non-transitory, computer-readable media of claim 8, furthercomprising: before receiving the first biometric data representing theone or more first biological characteristics of the individual duringthe first time period, causing, via the computing device, one or moreplayback devices to play back audio in a given environment, whereindetermining the current mood of the individual based on the one or morefirst biological characteristics comprises: determining the current moodof the individual based on one or more audio characteristics of theaudio that is being played in the given environment.
 10. The tangible,non-transitory, computer-readable media of claim 1, further comprising:after correlating the one or more first biological characteristics ofthe individual with the listening state of the individual, causing, viathe computing device, a cloud computing system to store the correlateddata in a user profile corresponding to the individual.
 11. Thetangible, non-transitory, computer-readable media of claim 1, whereininitiating the playback setting corresponding to the listening state ofthe individual that was correlated with the one or more first biologicalcharacteristics of the individual comprises: causing, via the computingdevice, one or more playback devices to play back audio in a givenenvironment, wherein the audio corresponds to the listening state of theindividual that was correlated with the one or more first biologicalcharacteristics of the individual.
 12. The tangible, non-transitory,computer-readable media of claim 1, wherein correlating the one or morefirst biological characteristics of the individual with the listeningstate of the individual comprises determining that the individual is ineither (a) an attentive listening state or (b) an inattentive listeningstate.
 13. The tangible, non-transitory, computer-readable media ofclaim 1, wherein the second biometric data indicates that the individualis asleep in a given environment, and wherein initiating the playbacksetting corresponding to the listening state of the individualcomprises: preventing, via the computing device, one or more playbackdevices from playing back audio in the given environment.
 14. Thetangible, non-transitory, computer-readable media of claim 1, whereininitiating the playback setting corresponding to the listening state ofthe individual that was correlated with the one or more first biologicalcharacteristics of the individual comprises: sending, via the computingdevice to a media service provider, a request for an audio trackcorresponding to the listening state of the individual that wascorrelated with the one or more first biological characteristics of theindividual; receiving, via the computing device from the media serviceprovider, the requested audio track corresponding to the listening stateof the individual that was correlated with the one or more firstbiological characteristics of the individual; and based on the receivedaudio tracks corresponding to the listening state of the individual thatwas correlated with the one or more first biological characteristics ofthe individual, causing, via the computing device, one or more playbackdevices to play back the audio track in the given environment.
 15. Thetangible, non-transitory, computer-readable media of claim 1, whereinbefore receiving the first biometric data representing the one or morefirst biological characteristics of the individual during the first timeperiod, causing, via the computing device, one or more playback devicesto play back audio in a given environment, and wherein initiating theplayback setting corresponding to the listening state of the individualthat was correlated with the one or more first biologicalcharacteristics of the individual comprises: sending, via the computingdevice to a media service provider, data corresponding to the listeningstate of the individual that was correlated with the one or more firstbiological characteristics of the individual to cause the media serviceprovider to update a status associated with the audio being played inthe given environment in accordance with the listening state of theindividual that was correlated with the one or more first biologicalcharacteristics of the individual.
 16. A method comprising: receiving,via a computing device, first biometric data representing one or morefirst biological characteristics of an individual during a first timeperiod; correlating, via the computing device, the one or more firstbiological characteristics of the individual with a listening state ofthe individual; receiving, via the computing device, second biometricdata representing one or more second biological characteristics of theindividual during a second time period, wherein the first time periodprecedes the second time period; determining, via the computing device,that the one or more second biological characteristics corresponds tothe one or more first biological characteristics; and based on thedetermination, initiating, via the computing device, a playback settingcorresponding to the listening state of the individual that wascorrelated with the one or more first biological characteristics of theindividual.
 17. The method of claim 16, wherein receiving the secondbiometric data representing the one or more second biologicalcharacteristics of the individual during the second time periodcomprises: detecting, via one or more sensors of the computing device,data corresponding to at least one of following: (i) Wi-Fi, (ii)Bluetooth, (iii) a millimeter wave scanner, (iv) an infrared laser, (v)electromagnetic radiation, (vi) a camera, (vii) a microphone, (viii)temperature, or (ix) perspiration.
 18. The tangible, non-transitory,computer-readable media of claim 16, wherein initiating the playbacksetting corresponding to the listening state of the individual that wascorrelated with the one or more first biological characteristics of theindividual comprises: causing, via the computing device, one or moreplayback devices to play back audio in a given environment, wherein theaudio corresponds to the listening state of the individual that wascorrelated with the one or more first biological characteristics of theindividual.
 19. A computing device comprising: a network interface; oneor more processors; and computer-readable media having instructionsencoded therein, wherein the instructions, when executed by the one ormore processors, cause the computing device to perform functionscomprising: receiving first biometric data representing one or morefirst biological characteristics of an individual during a first timeperiod; correlating the one or more first biological characteristics ofthe individual with a listening state of the individual; receivingsecond biometric data representing one or more second biologicalcharacteristics of the individual during a second time period, whereinthe first time period precedes the second time period; determining thatthe one or more second biological characteristics corresponds to the oneor more first biological characteristics; and based on thedetermination, initiating a playback setting corresponding to thelistening state of the individual that was correlated with the one ormore first biological characteristics of the individual.
 20. Thecomputing device of claim 19, wherein the second biometric dataindicates that the individual is asleep in a given environment, andwherein initiating the playback setting corresponding to the listeningstate corresponding to the individual that was correlated with the oneor more first biological characteristics of the individual comprises:preventing, via the computing device, one or more playback devices fromplaying back audio in the given environment.